The US Environmental Protection Agency has revealed a proposal for mass use of Dow Chemical’s herbicide 2,4-D on the company’s genetically-engineered corn and soybeans. The GE crops were developed to withstand several herbicides, including 2,4-D.

Dow would be allowed to sell the herbicide if the EPA approves it
following a 30-day public comment period.

The 2,4-D chemical, combined with glyphosate, makes up the
herbicide Enlist Duo. 2,4-D also makes up half of the toxic mix
in the now infamous 'Agent Orange,' used by the United
States during the Vietnam War, which is thought to have resulted
in the deaths of an estimated 400,000 people and birth defects in
500,000 others.

Dow’s genetically-engineered corn and soybeans – known as Enlist
– have received preliminary approval from the US Department of Agriculture.
Should Enlist crops win ultimate authorization, the USDA said
that would increase the annual use of 2,4-D
(2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid) in the United States from 26
million pounds per year to possibly 176 million pounds.

The crops are designed to withstand high doses of glyphosate –
brought to market by biotech giant Monsanto as
their Roundup weed killer – and 2,4-D. Dow’s corn and soybeans
thus earned the derogatory name 'Agent Orange' crops by
opponents
of both the highly-toxic chemical mix and the controversial use
of genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) in
large-scale agriculture.

Scientists, human and environmental health advocates, farming
organizations, and food transparency groups have urged government
regulators to think twice about unleashing more 2,4-D.

In 2012, seventy health scientists sent a letter to the EPA asking it to block approval
of Dow’s 2,4-D-resistant corn and soybeans for commercial sale.

Medical researchers have linked exposure to 2,4-D, and other chemicals like
it, to increased rates of cancer, Parkinson’s disease, endocrine
disruption, and low sperm counts, among other conditions. Higher
rates of birth anomalies have been found where there is heavy use
of 2,4-D.

Health concerns had prompted the Natural Resources Defense
Council to petition the EPA to halt use of the herbicide, though
that effort was defeated in 2012.

“With this decision it is clear that the EPA is serving the
interests of Dow Chemical and the biotech industry rather than
protecting our health and the environment,”said Andrew Kimbrell, executive director of
the Center for Food Safety.

In an agribusiness chemical arms race, Dow’s development of
2,4-D-resistant crops came about once first-generation
genetically-modified crops made by Monsanto evolved to resist the
company’s Roundup herbicide. The flood of new GE crops increased
the use of glyphosate, which has its own links to a host of illhealtheffects, and glyphosate-resistant
“superweeds.”

“2,4-D is not a solution to glyphosate-resistant weeds,”
Kimbrell said. “Weeds will rapidly evolve resistance to 2,4-D
as well if these crops are approved, driving a toxic spiral of
ever-increasing herbicide use. Dow’s Enlist crops are a textbook
example of unsustainable farming, profiting pesticide companies
to the detriment of American farmers, public health and the
environment.”

Nevertheless, Dow maintains that farmers need an answer for
“hard to control” weeds.

“Enlist Duo herbicide will help solve the weed control
challenges growers are facing, and will be another option to
further reduce the potential for development of
herbicide-resistant weeds,” said Damon Palmer of Dow
AgroSciences, a subsidy of Dow Chemical Company.

“At a time when farmers need to raise crop outputs to meet
growing demand, the Enlist Weed Control System will provide an
important tool and substantial economic benefits,” Palmer
added in a press release.